Jazz for aficionados

******"On the right equipment, classical music sounds very good. I suppose that's why classical musicians are always into the high end."******

Not so fast my friend!

All music can be appreciated on almost any system worthy of the name. Even table radios. I remember many enjoyable sunday afternoons listening to classical music broadcast by Bayerischer Rundfunk on a portable / table Grundig radio. All the in-laws gathered around.

Stereo review once did a series on the stereo systems of professional musicians. I was shocked. My little run of the mill stuff was the equal of them all, at least price wise.

Do not connect or associate music appreciation with the so-called 'high end'. The two are not related in the least. Those people have done enough damage as it is.

Music appreciation of the 'high end' seems to stop at 'Kind of Blue', and then only if it's an 'audiophile' pressing. Just saying.

Cheers

************"A visceral, non-analytic, appreciation of music is great and truly the bottom line; but, understanding the proces better can clear the way for a deeper understanding of the art".*********

Your post was very informative. You should be a teacher. Maybe you are?

But the quote above is the most IMPORTANT thing you said. It just so happened that I was listening to to the following CD as I read your post.

Fred McDowell -- Amazing Grace
Mississippi Delta Spirituals by the
Hunter's Chapel Singers of Como, Mississippi

These folks are as far away from understanding music theory on your level, as a person can get. But they do indeed get the visceral part. To me it says, HOME.

BTW, I do pause every now and then to make a joyful noise to The Lord.
In that spirit let me recommend:

Various Artist -- Say Amen, Somebody Org Soundtrack
Chanticleer -- How sweet the Sound
Robert Shaw -- American Hymns and Spirituals
Chanticleer -- Where the Sun Will Never Go Down
Fairfield Four -- Standing in the Safety Zone

As Cannonball once said, "it's all the same thing"

Cheers

*****These folks are as far away from understanding music theory on your level, as a person can get. But they do indeed get the visceral part. To me it says, HOME.*****

You would be surprised. What I described above is as rudimentary as one can get when one considers just how much there is to learn. The folks you mention would most certainly have this knowledge and more. I think that the point is how little most non-musican music lovers/audiophiles understand, how much there is to learn (if wanted), how much learning can improve appreciation, and that there is often a visceral aversion to learning more.

I hope that this does not offend anyone, but IMO, if a jazz lover doesn't know (for example) that most blues tunes are 12 measures long, I would suggest that the love doesn't go quite deep enough.

****'You would be surprised'****

Nope, don't think so. I stand by what I said. When it comes to the REAL blues, you might be surprised.

**********but IMO, if a jazz lover doesn't know (for example) that most blues tunes are 12 measures long, I would suggest that the love doesn't go quite deep enough.******

I am not offended in the least. I know about the Blues thingy, but I am surprised you would use that, because a lot of the Jazz that you have presented on this forum,as being your favorites, has no blues element at all. Which pretty much sums up what's wrong with so-called MODERN / WORLD Jazz.

And lastly, there is no prerequisite or requirement, to have any formal education, or training, or experience, or talent, in order to appreciate music, or any other art form. If there were, the concert halls and art galleries would be empty.

But in the end, it is the non-musical, the non-artistic, who are the final arbitrators. They decide who is great and not so great. They decide who is saying something and who is not. Lack of knowledge of the blues notwithstanding.

So the consumers of all this effort by the creative musicians, are the most important folks in the entire scheme of things.

Your post was very informative to me. Rudimentary or not.

Cheers

If I said anything to give you the identity of my "jazz friend", I would appreciate it if you just forgot it. His heirs, who I respect, might object to my revelation of the fact that he never practiced.

Maybe Frogman, or Learsfool could tell us how he selected the musicians to accompany him on what they called "pick up gigs". Although none of them were famous, they were accomplished jazz musicians. These sets were always in what I call "deep in the pocket" jazz clubs, no requests of standards, all improvisation, where the musicians had to really be down with it. "If you can't git down, don't git up".

That last note reminds me of a local jazz musician I knew. When I asked him why he wasn't famous, he explained that he preferred the life of a family man to being on the road, and then he opened a large album of photos which contained photographs of him accompanying many very famous musicians when they came to town.

The last time I saw him, he really put on a show. Since he knew all my favorite tunes, not only did he nail them, but he added his own licks which indicated, not only did he have what it took, but that he knew he had what it took.

I recall an interview of Horace Silver by a famous DJ, where Horace was telling him about problems with his bass player. "He told me that he was tired of playing that same old "beeng bong", I told him that's what makes my sound, I've got to have that "Beeng bong". he wanted to stretch out and make it known that he could play more than "beeng bong". I don't recall how Horace resolved that issue, but if you listen to the 1956 version of Senor Blues, with Hank Mobley, tenor sax; Donald byrd, trumpet; Doug Watkins, bass; Louis Hayes, drums; you'll hear how "beeng bong" blends in with the piano and makes that jam so spectacular. Maybe Horace gave him a raise, I don't know, but this is a remarkable revelation to both sides of that "beeng bong" coin.